Chuck vs Time
by couriro
Summary: Time - It's something we only have a limited amount of. Charah.
1. Chapter 1

**_Here is my new fic. Tell me if you like the beginning. Hope you enjoy!!!_**

Time. It's the one thing that moves forward without asking. It's the one thing that you can't go back and change. It's the one thing that can heal old wounds if you let it. But for Chuck Bartowski, it's the one thing he can't seem to get off his mind. It had been one year, four months, and twenty-two days since the Intersect rebuild had been completed. Yes, he kept track, because one year four months and twenty-eight days had passed since the woman he loved walked out of his life. Time had passed and he had moved on but he had not forgotten. Chuck was staring out his office window looking out on the skyline of L.A. Chuck had gotten a handsome compensation for his services as the Intersect and was able to start his software company he had always wanted.

"Chuck, it's 4 o'clock. You wanted me to remind you of your meeting at 4:30." Amber, his assistant, came in his office.

Chuck kept looking out the window, "Thanks, Amber."

"Are you okay?" Amber asked. Chuck turned when she asked the question. "It's just you seem to have been in a funk since you scheduled this meeting last week."

"Sorry, Amber. I'm fine really. It's just I've been tossing around a lot of ideas in my head lately." Chuck said as he grabbed his coat from his chair and headed towards the door and Amber.

"Gotcha. If you need someone to talk to, I'm a good listener." Amber said compassionately.

"I know you're a good listener. That's why I hired you. I appreciate the concern, but I'm good really. I'll see you tomorrow, okay?" Chuck touched her arm and walked past her.

Amber watched as he left for his meeting.

As Chuck left, he didn't realize that he was going to really need Amber in the coming weeks and months to keep him from going into a downward spiral based on the events of his upcoming meeting.


	2. Giving Notice

**Sorry, thought I had posted this. Guess I didn't. Again, updating will be sparse during busy season for me. Please be patient.**

Chuck made it to the restaurant. It was 4:45. Traffic was a bear, but when is it not in L.A. He looked around and saw who he was looking for and walked over.

"Sorry, I'm late. Long time no see. What brings you to L.A.?" Chuck said as he took off his coat and put it on the back of his chair.

"Come on, Bartowski." His friend replied back.

"Look, Casey, I've been busy running my company. I don't know why you're here." Chuck retorted. "I haven't heard from you since you left and then all of a sudden you call me out of the blue last week and say you're coming to town and want to visit."

"I thought you would want to know first that Walker turned her notice in." Casey replied.

"Oh, really. Good for her." Chuck replied trying to keep the shock factor to himself.

"That's all you have to say?" Casey returned taking a sip of his drink.

"Yes, that's all I have to say." Chuck responded with a look around the restaurant.

Casey looked around to see what Chuck was possibly looking for. "Okay, then. You seem nervous."

"I'm fine. I just have a lot of things on my mind regarding work. That's all." Chuck answered.

"I'm sure. I saw an article about your company in the Wall Street Journal." Casey replied.

"Yeah, business has been good these past six months." Chuck said. He looked at his watch. "I know you're not a talker, so is that all you came here to tell me? I have dinner plans with my girlfriend."

"Girlfriend? So you're over Walker?" Casey retorted.

"Why wouldn't I be? She had a choice and she chose it. What was I supposed to do? Wait until she changed her mind. Sorry, I couldn't do that. It wasn't fair to me." Chuck said angrily.

"Right. Well, glad you've been able to move on, Bartowski." Casey replied.

Chuck got up to leave. "Look, Casey, it was great seeing you. Next time you have news, just tell me over the phone okay. I don't need a face to face visit." Chuck said.

"I'll keep that in mind. You know, I didn't realize you had become so bitter." Casey said.

"Well, four and a half years of Intersect duty and being dumped can have an effect." Chuck answered as he got up and started putting on his jacket. "Good seeing you."

Chuck left and Casey just sat there drinking his coffee. A person came up behind him and touched his shoulder.

"Next time, don't call me to do your dirty work." Casey said.

Sarah walked around and sat in Chuck's chair. She just sat there and smiled.

"What did he say? How did he react?" Sarah asked.

"You saw him from the other table. He was nervous. He felt someone was watching us. He looked around the restaurant. He's bitter toward you." Casey explained.

Sarah sighed and looked down at the table.

"What's your next move?" Casey asked.

"I'm going to move into my new condo and find a job. Then, I'm going to get Chuck back." Sarah said confidently.

"What are you going to do kill the new girlfriend?" Casey asked trying to get her reaction.

"Girlfriend?" Sarah shouted. She realized she shouted and then whispered, "Girlfriend?"

"What did you expect the moron to do? Wait for you? There's one thing that was always consistent with your relationship with Bartowski. You always knew how to let him down just as you gave him hope." Casey explained.

Sarah scowled at Casey after he made his statement. She didn't respond. She knew what Casey said was true, but the past was the past. She couldn't change it. She would if she could. There was one thing she knew, over the past year, there was always a part of her that was missing. She felt like half a person and she was tired of it.

"Look, Walker, I wish you luck. Knowing Bartowski, as soon as he sees you, he'll drop the new girl without blinking an eye. You have nothing to worry about, eh?" Casey said trying to recover from his last statement.

Sarah smiled cautiously. She had felt confident when she left that he would still be waiting for her. The confidence vanished the minute Casey said the word "Girlfriend". Time had always been her enemy since she left him and it was winning the battle.


	3. Time Had Come

**_Sorry this took some time to get done. It is my busy season at work. I have not forgotten about my fics. I encourage to please review. Give me some hints on where you might want this to go. I have ideas, but I would like to hear others. Thanks for reading._**

The time had come. Chuck knew it eventually would. He knew Sarah would come back just when he was moving forward with his life. That was his luck. Every time he thought his life was moving forward, Sarah would always make it take two steps backwards. After his meeting with Casey he had decided to take a run on the beach. He told himself that Casey's news was not going to get to him, however, he was out running trying to clear his mind.

_Chuck was playing a video game in the living room of their apartment. Beckman had ordered them to live together once Ellie and Awesome had gotten married. They had been living together now for about 6 months. Sarah came into the living room straightening up the magazines on the coffee table. She then pulled a decorative pillow out from under Chuck who was oblivious to Sarah to straighten it up as well. _

"_You know, you could quit playing that damn game and set the table. Ellie and Awesome are going to be here any minute." Sarah spouted as she gave him a stern look with her hands on her hips._

_Chuck sighed and then grabbed the remote to turn off the tv. "Sarah, the apartment looks fine. It's just Ellie and Awesome." _

"_Exactly, it's Ellie and Awesome. The more the apartment needs to be perfect. Now get up and set the table please." Sarah yelled as she was pulling plates and utensils out and setting them on the bar."_

_Chuck got up. He grabbed the plates and started put the plates out and Sarah came behind him putting the napkins out. They finished and Sarah went to check on the vegetables on the stove while Chuck was grabbing a beer out of the fridge._

"_Y'know, if I didn't know any better, I would swear we were acting like a married couple and you really like it." Chuck claimed as he was opening his beer and leaning against the counter._

"_Yeah, well, we are supposed to be together in a serious relationship." Sarah turned and looked at him._

"_But we're not, Sarah. This is all pretend. Don't you ever get tired of pretending? We've been at this for six months." Chuck questioned._

_Sarah walked over to him, "Do you mean, do I ever just want to have sex?"_

_Chuck almost spit out his beer and coughed, "No, that's not what I meant. It's not about the sex, it's about real intimacy. Don't you ever just want to be in a relationship with someone you care about or love? I know I do, but as long as the intersect is in my head, I can't."_

"_What do you want me to say to you, Chuck? There is nothing I can do to change our situation. We have our orders." Sarah was getting agitated. _

"_Don't give me the "We've got orders" line. I am all too aware of that. I am reminded of that every morning I wake up and I'm still sitting behind that damn Nerd Herd desk." Chuck spouted back. "I didn't realize how much I wanted to move forward in my life until I was forced to stand still. The Intersect keeps me from getting a new job and having a real relationship." _

_Sarah didn't say anything. She just stared at him. The timer went off on the oven. Sarah turned to tend to the casserole with her back to Chuck._

"_Y'know, I didn't think I could hate Bryce more than I did when he was with Jill, but I think I do. I'm stuck being a government asset and I'm living with someone who doesn't reciprocate back any feelings for me other than friendship yet I am supposed to be in a relationship with her." He took a swig of beer. The door bell rang. "I'll get it."_

Chuck slowed down to a walk and came across his favorite thinking spot of the beach. He sat down to stretch. After stretching, he pulled his knees up to his chest and buried his head into his knees. He remembered the rest of that night's conversation.

_Chuck walked back into the apartment from taking the garbage out. He went to the bedroom to get ready for bed. He heard Sarah in the bathroom. He was changing to his pajamas when Sarah walked in wearing a red spaghetti strap gown. He grabbed a pillow off of the bed, "Good night."_

_Sarah was about to get in the bed when she noticed Chuck walking towards the bedroom door. "Where are you going?"_

"_To sleep on the couch. Good night again." Chuck said as he was about to walk out of the bedroom._

"_Good night." Sarah said as she watched him leave the room._

_Meanwhile, Chuck was watching TV on the couch trying to fall asleep. He finally fell asleep._

_A couple of hours later, Sarah woke up still hearing the TV on. She went into the living room to check on Chuck. He was sleeping on his side against the back of the couch. She could tell he was trying to keep warm. She grabbed the throw blanket off of their chair and placed it over him. She ran her fingers through his hair and placed a soft kiss on his temple. She then whispered in his ear, "One day, I'm going to reciprocate my feelings towards you in a way that you could've never imagined. Because I know one thing for sure, I've never felt like this toward anyone in my entire life and I'll be damned if I'm going to ever lose it." She kissed him one more time on the temple and went back to the bedroom._

_When Chuck opened his eyes when he heard the bedroom door close. He said to himself, "I knew it."_

Chuck got up from sitting on the sand and dusted himself off and walked back to his car. He knew it was time to face the facts about Sarah. He just didn't know what they were exactly.


	4. Coming Clean

**Okay, so sorry for the delay. I have rewritten this chapter many times. I am finally happy with it, sort of. I love developing stories on the fly and see where it leads me. I'm just having a hard time creatively due to work. Please review. I'm open to ideas of where to take the story. I will try and do better. Also, for other fanfic writers of Chuck, I love your stories, please keep updating them.**

Time passed slowly for Chuck over the next two weeks. He felt he was being watched – in the grocery store, in a restaurant, and in the gym. Sarah had not shown up like Casey had said she would. He knew she had to be in town. He felt it. One day at work, he decided to do some recon on his own. Being the intersect for so long, he had gotten good at spy work. Amber walked into his office to deliver some messages she had taken. Chuck was sitting at his desk staring at his computer, when she touched his shoulder. Chuck shot straight up out of his chair.

"Chuck, here are your messages. I'm leaving for the day." Amber asked.

"Oh. Thanks, Amber." Chuck asked. "I'm just really busy."

Chuck thumbed through his messages. He didn't notice any were emergencies.

"Chuck, you haven't left this office all day. You need to get out for some fresh air. Go walk around the park or something? Or just go home and play video games." Amber pushed.

Chuck looked back at his computer.

"Chuck?" Amber asked.

Chuck shook his head, "What? I'm sorry, Amber. You know what, you're right. I'm done for the day too. Let me walk you out. I've got some things I need to do at home anyway." He grabbed his coat from his coat rack.

Chuck and Amber walked out of the building together into the parking lot. Chuck had his hand on the small of Amber's back and looked around for anything unusual.

"Chuck, thanks for walking me to my car." She gave him a hug when they made it to her car.

"Any time. I can't let anything happen to my favorite employee." Chuck said with a smile.

"I'll see you on Monday. Have a good weekend." Amber said as she got in the car. Chuck closed the door and waved. He walked to his car across the parking lot and as he was walking, he looked at all of the cars in the parking lot for anything suspicious. He made a mental note of all of the cars in the parking lot and noticed he hadn't seen the black Porsche in the parking lot before.

He decided to walk over to the car and just look inside casually. He didn't notice anything unusual until he heard a voice, "Is there something I can help you with?" Chuck turned around really quick.

"No, I'm just walking to my car over there." Chuck turned around and spoke the lady. "A friend of mine used to have a Porsche just like this."

"I got it about a year and a half ago at a government auction. I got it for such a great deal." The lady explained.

"Well, sorry to bother. Have a good weekend." Chuck expressed.

"You too."

Chuck made it to his car and drove home. When he got home, he changed into his sweats and went to his home office to look out the window. He looked out the window and noticed a Miata drive down the street and stop at a house two doors down. No one got out of the car. He decided to go out for a run around his neighborhood and investigate. He was grabbing his IPod when the doorbell rang. He went to the door to open it.

"I was just about to go out for a run. Maybe you can come back later." Chuck explained as he walked past her and put his ear plugs in his ears and turned on his IPod. He took off running.

Sarah turned around and watched Chuck start running. She said to herself out loud, "This is going to be interesting" She yelled after Chuck, "I'LL BE HERE WHEN YOU GET BACK." She sat on the step to his porch and waited and waited and waited.

After four hours of waiting, Sarah got up and was about to leave when the front door opened up. "It's getting cold." Chuck started to walk inside.

Sarah got up and watched Chuck walk further inside his house. "Are you coming inside?"

Sarah walked into the house and followed Chuck. "How did you get inside?"

"I have a back door." Chuck said as he grabbed a beer out of the refrigerator. "Beer or water?"

"Water, please." Chuck grabbed it and handed it to Sarah as she stood in the door of the kitchen.

Chuck walked into the den and Sarah followed. "I assume you came here to talk. So talk or are you going to just watch me walk around my house?"

Sarah took a sip of her water, "Well, I'm not quite sure what to say now that I'm here. I've rehearsed this conversation for the past month. But for some reason, I don't know where to start."

"Let me help you." He turned and walked over to Sarah and looked her in the eyes coldly. "Why don't you explain to me exactly why I woke up one morning and your side of the bed was empty? Why don't you explain to me why after almost a year and a half you decide to come back? That's a good place to start I think."

Sarah looked down at the floor and then back at Chuck with tears in her eyes. "I made a huge mistake leaving. When I realized there was nothing standing in our way to be together, I freaked out. I felt like I was being suffocated, so I left."

Chuck walked away from her and went to look out on his patio, "Glad to know I have that effect on you. Sarah, I was freaking out too. I didn't know who I was after being the Intersect for four and a half years. I thought we could figure everything out together. Don't worry though, I figured it out on my own."

"Chuck, I came back because I love you. I've always loved you. I want to spend the rest of my life with you." Sarah pleaded.

"Well, I don't love you anymore. I moved on, so should you." Chuck spouted back.

"Oh, right. Casey says you have a girlfriend. Where is she by the way? Is she the brunette that you work with? You are very protective of her from what I've seen. You always had a thing for brunettes." Sarah fought back.

"I knew you were spying on me. How long have you been in town?" Chuck retorted.

"I've been in town for two months," Sarah explained.

"So you sent Casey to see what I had been up to? I knew it. I think you should leave." Chuck said as he walked toward the front door.

Sarah watched Chuck as he opened the door and avoided eye contact with her. Sarah walked up to him. He grabbed his face into her hands and forced him to look at her. "You better tell your girlfriend that I'm in town." She released his face and walked towards her car. Chuck watched her leave and prayed he had enough willpower.


	5. Lunch Plans

_Sorry for the delay. I have not forgotten about my other story. I just need some direction on it. If you want to send me some, let me know. I don't own Chuck, but if I did, it would be coming back before March 2010. But at least it is coming back. Thank you NBC. Also, please review. I need to see how I am doing. I will try and do better with reviewing every one else's._

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Chuck woke up early the following day. He couldn't get out of his head the fight from the previous night with Sarah. He decided to go into the office and work. Maybe working could get his mind off of Sarah. He thought that she still looked absolutely phenomenal considering all she was wearing was jeans, a shirt, and a jacket. He needed to get his mind off of her and fast. He got ready quickly and went into the office to work.

Needless to say, the project he was working on was for the government. The NSA and CIA had begun to use his software company for special projects since he got it up and running. He turned his IPod on and began working. When he looked up from his computer, it was six hours later and he was hungry. He decided to go get something to eat. He grabbed his coat and went to his car. When he got to his car, Sarah was waiting for him. Sarah was wearing black form fitting jeans, a red tank top and had her hair up in a ponytail.

"Working weekends?" Sarah asked.

"Got a new project that I'm working on." Chuck replied.

"Hungry?" Sarah asked. "You've been here all day."

"Stalking much?" Chuck asked as he opened up his car door.

Sarah grabbed his hand. "I'm not stalking you. I'm going after what I want. Give me a chance. Let's go to lunch."

Chuck looked Sarah up and down. "I've got errands to run before tonight."

"Look, let's go to lunch and afterwards you still don't want anything to do with me, I'll leave you alone." Sarah said with a smile.

Chuck bobbed his head, thinking it could be a way to move on, "Okay, sure. Where are we going?"

Sarah grabbed the keys out of Chuck's hand. "I'll drive. I know where we're going. Get in." Sarah pushed by him into the driver's seat. Chuck look dumbfounded. He closed the door and walked over to the passenger side of the car and got in.

Thirty minutes later, they're walking into a small bistro close to the beach. They sit down at the table. There is awkward silence just like in the car ride. "So, how is your company doing?"

"It's doing well. I got a new project a month ago and it is pretty much going to monopolize my time for the next several years." Chuck explained. "Definite job security."

"That's awesome. I'm really happy for you." Sarah exclaimed.

"Yeah, I'm really enjoying what I'm doing." Chuck said as he took a sip of his water.

"How are Ellie and Awesome?" Sarah asked hesitantly.

"They're great. They moved to San Francisco. Devon is the Chief Cardiologist at a hospital up there now." Chuck explained. "And Ellie just found out she's pregnant."

Sarah reached across the table to touch Chuck's hand, "You must be so excited about becoming an uncle." As soon as Sarah touched his hand, he pulled it away.

"I am. I just wish I had time to visit them more." Chuck responded.

"Take a weekend and go up there. You can do whatever you want now that you have your own business. I wish I could see Ellie. I've really missed her over the past year."

Chuck looked at his watch, "Sarah, I really need to get back. I have a lot to do before tonight."

Sarah sighs. "Sure. I understand. I really appreciate you going to lunch with me. Let me get the check and we'll go." She reached for the bill.

Chuck grabbed the bill, "No. I got it."

Sarah smiled. "You don't have to do that. I'll pay for my lunch. I asked you."

"Look, I said I got it. So I got it." Chuck returned almost angry. Chuck paid the bill and they left.

The car ride back to Chuck's office was quiet. Sarah pulled up next to her car; she had a red Porsche now. Chuck got out of the car and came around to get the keys from Sarah.

"Keys." She handed them to him. Chuck gave her a small soft smile. "Will I see you again?" She was curious how lunch went. She wanted to hold up her end of the deal for lunch.

"I guess." Chuck thinks for a second. "Look, I'm inviting some friends over tonight to watch the UCLA-Stanford football game. If you want to come to over, you can."

"Is it gonna be okay with your girlfriend?" Sarah questioned. "I mean, I don't want it to be uncomfortable."

"It won't be uncomfortable." Chuck replied. Chuck smiled a little bigger. "The game starts at 6. Come if you want. It's your decision. I just thought I'd ask. Plus, I have some things that I found that you left behind that I thought you might want back."

"Oh." Sarah replied a little sad. "I might come by for a little bit. I'm not that big of a football fan." Sarah walked over to her car so she could get in.

Chuck was about to get in his car when Sarah yelled back.

"Chuck, the reason I left that stuff was because I was coming back. I was always coming back." Chuck watched Sarah get in her car and drive away.


	6. The Box

Sorry, it took me so long to post. Being a CPA is tough. Please read and review. Thank you for all of my reviewers in the past and in the future. I truly appreciate your comments. Now enjoy the chapter.

* * *

That evening, Chuck was out on the back patio talking with his friends when Sarah arrived. The house was crowded with people dressed in their UCLA and Stanford colors screaming at the 52 inch TV. Sarah maneuvered through the people trying to find Chuck. When she found him on the patio, he was sitting on the edge of a chair. A brunette woman came up and wrapped her arms wrapped around his neck and whispered in his ear something that made him smile. He kissed her cheek, got up and walked toward the house when he saw Sarah. He waved at her and went and grabbed a beer out of a cooler and brought it back to the brunette. Sarah noticed the brunette say "Thank You." Chuck smiled and walked over to Sarah.

"Glad you made it. Do you want something to drink?" Chuck asked. "We've got beer, margaritas, wine, sodas or water."

Sarah responded, "I think I need to go. This was a mistake. It's obviously me who can't handle being here watching you with your girlfriend."

Chuck was shocked to hear Sarah make her comment. "Sarah, you just got here. Enjoy yourself. Morgan and Anna are here. They should be in the kitchen with the appetizers. I told them you were back in town. They want to see you."

Chuck put his hand on the small of her back and walked her into the kitchen.

"Morgan, Sarah's here." Morgan was stuffing crab cakes into his mouth. Anna was trying to wipe his mouth.

"Sarah, oh my gosh. Glad you finally came back. You really did a number here on our boy." Morgan exclaimed as he went to give her a hug. "Are you going to stay around this time?"

"That's my plan, but I'm not sure if he wants me around." Sarah says as she motions her head toward Chuck.

Chuck raised his eyebrows and looked at them, "And that's my cue to check on the rest of my guests. Have fun." Chuck takes off toward the living room.

Anna comes up to Morgan and Sarah, "You're drooling, Morgan. Wipe your mouth."

"Hey, Anna. How's everything been going?" Sarah asked trying to escape the awkwardness.

"Going well. Morgan and I opened up an Asian restaurant. We're getting married on Valentine's Day." Anna responded with a huge smile. "You've got to come to the wedding."

"I'm so excited for you two. I'll definitely be there." Sarah returned.

Morgan spouted out, "Since you're back, could you please work on Chuck? He's just not the same."

"I don't know, Morgan." Sarah said.

Out of the corner of her eye, Sarah sees the brunette holding Chuck's hand and leading him upstairs. Morgan is talking to her, but she doesn't hear him.

"I'm sorry, Morgan, what did you say?" Sarah replied not taking her eyes off of Chuck.

Morgan turned around to see what Sarah was looking at. "That's Ashley. Did Chuck tell you about her?"

Sarah shook her head. "He hasn't."

Morgan smiled, "Ask him."

Anna pulled Morgan, "Come on, I'm not staying by the appetizers all night. Good seeing you, Sarah."

They left Sarah alone in the kitchen. She grabbed her wine glass and took a sip. Sarah contemplated following Chuck and Ashley upstairs or just leaving. After walking around and watching the game for a little while, Sarah's curiosity got the best of her and she decided to go upstairs.

As Sarah reached the top of the stairs, Ashley came into view. Ashley was walking out of a bedroom and toward her. Ashley smiled at Sarah as they passed each other and Ashley went back downstairs. Sarah walked to the room that Ashley came out of. She peaked in the room. Chuck was putting a box on the bed. Sarah saw the box had her name in big letters on the side of it. He opened the box and pulled out some pictures. He smiled as he looked through them and then threw them back in the box. He sat down on the bed, closed his eyes and brushed his hands over his face and up through his hair.

Sarah knocked on the door. Chuck shot up and looked at the door. "I just wanted to let you know that I was going to leave. Football's just not really my thing." She smiled as she walked in the room.

Chuck stood up, "I understand. I hope you had a good time." He smiled his half smile.

Sarah pointed at the box, "Is that my stuff?"

Chuck looked at the box, "Yeah, it is."

Sarah walked over to the box. "May I?" She was asking permission to look inside.

"It's your stuff, of course."

Sarah picked up the pictures on top. It was the picture of them together on vacation one summer. They had gone with Ellie and Devon. Ellie took a picture of Sarah just as she had jumped on Chuck's back. Sarah smiled and laughed. "That was a good trip to Baja."

"Yeah, it was." Chuck said somberly.

Sarah flipped through the rest of the pictures from the trip. She looked through the box and saw some old shirts and some CDs she had left. She stopped when she saw a small red heart shaped velvet box at the bottom of the box. She picked it up. "I don't remember this."

"You wouldn't. But it's yours." Chuck said taking it from her hand and putting it back in the box.

"Chuck…" Sarah started.

"Look, Sarah. I'm glad your back. Really, I am." Chuck interrupted.

"But?" Sarah knew that was coming.

"But I just started moving forward again. I made a promise that I wouldn't go backwards again." Chuck continued.

Sarah looked at him with tears in her eyes. She caressed his face. "I was moving backwards until I came back here. I only want to move forward too. With you." She leaned up to kiss him and pulled his head back.

"I can't, Sarah. I'm sorry." Chuck said.

Sarah pulled back and stared at him. She turned and looked the box. "She is very lucky to have you."

"Who?" Chuck asked.

"Ashley, your girlfriend." Sarah replied. "I'm sorry about everything, Chuck. Really I am." Sarah picked up the box with her stuff and walked towards the door.

"Can I ask you a question?" Chuck wasn't going to let her go without knowing the answer to the question that had been puzzling him since she left.

Sarah turned around, "Sure."


	7. Sure

_Sorry for the delay. I figured if I could plead with others for more chapters then I should at least update mine. I am sorry. Being a CPA, I am just coming out of a fog. I am having a hard time with inspiration but Malamoo and MXPW are doing a good job by updating their stories. Thanks for reading. _

"Can I ask you a question?"Chuck asked.

Sarah turned around, "Sure."

Chuck walked up to Sarah and posed, "How would you feel if you were in my shoes right now?"

Sarah just looked at him. Her eyes started to tear up. She looked at her feet feeling defeated and shook her head. She couldn't look at him because she knew how she would feel. She sniffled, "Angry, empty, broken, and missing a major piece of me. I'd want to curl up in my bedroom and never want to come out."

Chuck nodded his head, "Exactly. I was exactly that way for the first six months after you left. Then I woke up one morning and said that it was enough. I looked in the mirror and wasn't pleased with what I saw. I realized that I was the only person who could pick myself up so I did. I got my life in order and built my business. I decided I wasn't going to wait on you to come back. I couldn't. Because as much as I wanted to wait for you, I knew in the end I would be disappointed in the turnout. Every time we got close to something real, disappointment and frustration was always right behind it."

"We could start over this time. There is nothing in the way this time," Sarah responds.

"Don't you think we've been given more chances than we deserve already?" Chuck questioned.

"Yeah, but I promise if I get another chance there is no way, I'm failing this time. I don't have it in me to lose you again." Sarah started crying.

"You didn't lose me, I lost you. You're the one that left, I was right here. I was sleeping in bed clueless while you slipped out." Chuck reminded her.

Sarah nodded her head. "You don't have to remind me of my mistake. And yes, it was a mistake. But I can't change the past, Chuck. I can try and make the future better and that is what I am trying to do here." Sarah walked over to Chuck by the bed and put the box down. She grabbed his hand and rubbed the top of his hand with her thumb. "This is it, Chuck. This can be as real and simple as we've always wanted it to be, if you would just give us a second chance. Doesn't this feel right now to you?"

Chuck closed his eyes when she touched him but remained silent. "I feel confused."

"Come with me, I want to show you something." Sarah pulled at his hand.

"I can't. I have guests." Chuck told her.

Sarah took a piece of paper and pen she found on his night stand, "Well, when you can, then come by here, I'll be there."

Later in the week, Chuck left work early. He had some errands to run. He pulled out his to-do list and noticed the address Sarah wrote was on the back. He put the address into his GPS and took off. When he got there, he was quite surprised. He walked up to the front door of the duplex and rang the door bell.

He waited for a few minutes and was about to leave when the door opened. Sarah was in her robe and her hair was wet.

"Leaving so soon?" Sarah asked. "Sorry I was just getting out of the shower when I heard the doorbell ring."

Chuck hadn't seen Sarah dressed like that since they lived together. "I was running some errands and I was coming this way so I decided to come by and see what you wanted me to see."

"Let me get dressed and we can talk. I moved in two weeks ago. You'd be proud of me, I bought it. Go ahead and look around. I am done being a nomad. I came back to L.A. to finally start living a real life. You can look around, give me a few minutes." Sarah said. She disappeared into another room while Chuck just looked around the den.

The house wasn't decorated that much but it had a few pictures on the mantle. It had the picture of them on the mantle, in fact there were many pictures of them all around the den. Sarah came back out a few minutes later.

"Sorry, I figured you decided not to come by since I hadn't heard from you. Your girlfriend is a really lucky girl." Sarah stated.

"Ashley is not my girlfriend. She wants more, but I can't give her more. I couldn't." Chuck said as he walked up to Sarah. "Something was in the way of me giving her more."

"What was that something?" Sarah asked with a hint of smile.

Chuck started to smile back, "Hope, that someone would finally come back to me."

Sarah grabbed Chuck and pulled him into a heated kiss. When they came up from the kiss, Sarah said,

"I've been wanting to do that for a year and a half."

Chuck brushed some hair behind her ear, "Get dressed, I'm taking us out to dinner, we have a lot of catching up to do."


End file.
